Machine for flattening sheet metal articles



July 13, 1943. F. w. HOULSTON MACHINE. FOR FLATTENING SHEET METAL ARTICLES Filed April 10, 1942 2Sheets-Sheet 1 .INVENTOR, WMWD July 13, 1943. F. w. HOULSTON 2,323,909

MACHINE FOR FLATTENING SHEET METAL ARTICLES I Filed April I0, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2- Ivy zlvror e,

Patented July 13, 1943 MACHINE FOR FLATTENIN G SHEET METAL ARTICLES Frederick William Houlston, Toronto, Ontario, Canada Application April 10, 1942, Serial No. 438,414 In Canada October 17, 1941 3 Claims.

The object of the invention is to provide a clamping press of the hand-operated type in which sheet metal parts may be readily flattened after they have been bent On a bending brake.

A distinctive feature of construction is that the clamping press surmounts the bending brake and may be swung to one side of the machine when not in use.

Having briefly related the main objects of the invention, subsidiary objects and advantages will appear in the ensuing detailed description.

Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 is a front elevation of the machine in which the clamping press is shown in its normal position, the position to which it is swung when not in use being indicated in dash lines.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Like numerals denote similar parts in each figure of the drawings.

The machine with which my invention is associated comprises a bed rigid with end standards H and [2 supported by legs I3. The bed has a bolster l4 adjustable by lugs l5 engaged with screws 16 carried by the flange H. A clamp plate I8 is clamped against work on the bolster M by means of devices while the Work is bent by the bending leaf l9 which is pivoted at 21 in adjustable blocks 28 and actuated by handles as at 3|. The bending brake may be equipped with a standard tinsmiths folder of the type used for the purpose of bending or folding the edges of sheet metal at various angles or turning flanges etc. Such a folder is generally indicated at 48 in Figs. 2 and 3, and embodies the usual roll 49 over which work is bent by a leaf adjustable by screws as at 50. The folder does not form a part of the present invention, hence it need not be described at greater length; and having briefly described the bending brake, the invention will now be recounted.

The clamping press structure is disposed over and above the hand brake mechanism, and comprises a pair of end plates 32 and 33 constituting an upward continuation of the respective standards II and I2 upon which they rest. The end plates are rigidly joined by a clamp bar 34 and spaced above this bar is a similar but movable clamp bar 35 having its ends guidably arranged in vertical slots 35 formed in the end plates aforesaid. Compression springs 31 are arranged in said slots 36 to normally retain the movable clamp bar 35 in raised position. The

bars 3 3 and 35 are spaced apart sufiiciently to accommodate the placing of work therebetween which is required to be flattened such as for instance a piece of stock which has been bent back upon itself in the hand brake and which is required to be completely flattened.

A cam mechanism is used to apply clamping pressure on the movable bar 35. This consists of a shaft 38 having its ends journalled in the end plates 32 and 33 and provided along its length with spaced cams 39 having eccentric faces engaging the upper face of the bar. The shaft is turned by a handle 46 to cause the cams to depress the bar. The handle 3% is disposed medially of the length of the shaft and straps ll straddle the shaft to brac it, which straps are attached rigidly to the movable bar. It will be manifest from this construction that the cam mechanism supplies adequate leverage for exerting clamping pressure on movable bar 35 for operation of the clamping press. A brace 34 is pivoted to the member it for swinging upwardly into supporting engagement with the bar 34 to aid in taking clamping pressure in the use of the press.

It is desirable to arrange the clamping press so that it may be swung to one side of the machine when not in use, and for this purpose the end plate 32 is pivoted to the standard I! as at 42', while the end plate 33 is provided with cap screws 33 or the like which secure it to the standard i2 and enable it to be freed. Accordingly, on releasing the screws 43 the press may be swung upwardly on its pivotal axis to a vertical position as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, Where it is retained by a shoulder piece 4 It will be manifest from the preceding description that the invention provides a useful and serviceable clamp press for a hand bending brake.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine of the class described, a frame, a pair of end plates mounted vertically thereon in spaced relation, a lower clamp bar extending between and supported by said end plates, an upper clamp bar arranged over said lower clamp bar, means on the end plates for guiding said upper clamp bar bodily to and away from said lower clamp bar, spring means exerting an upward stress on said upper clamp bar, a shaft surmounting said clamp bars and j ournalled in said end plates, a series of spaced cams on said shaft having eccentric faces for depressing said upper clamp bar, a handle for turning said shaft, and a brace supported pivotally on said frame between said endplates for swinging upwardly to engage and brace said lower clamp bar.

2. In a machine of the class described, a frame, a pair of end plates mounted vertically thereon in spaced relation, one of the end plates being pivotally attached to said frame and the other being detachably secured thereto, means rigidly uniting said end plates, said means comprising a lower clamp bar extending between and supported by said end plates, an upper clamp bar arranged over said lower clamp bar, means on the end plates for guiding said upper clamp bar bodily to and away from said lower clamp bar, spring means exerting an upward stress on said upper clamp bar, a shaft surmounting said clamp bars and journalled in said end plates, a series of spaced cams on said shaft having eccentric faces for depressing said upper clamp bar, and a handle for turning said shaft.

3. In a machine of the class described, a supporting frame provided with a pair of end standards, a clamping press structure comprising end plates constituting upward continuations of said standards, clamp bars carried by the end plates, one of which is rigid therewith, means for urging the clamp bars into clamping relation, means pivotally attaching one of said end plates to the subjacent standard, and means releasably securing the other end plate to its subjacent standard so as to permit of the clamping press structure being swung upwardly to one side of said frame on the pivotally attached end plate.

FREDERICK WILLIAM HOULSTON. 

